Reaching for New Heights at Loring Ward’s National Education Conference

More than 200 Advisors and Loring Ward employees gathered at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs last week for our annual National Education Conference. It would be impossible to share all the inspiring/interesting/thoughtful insights participants shared and heard, but here are some highlights…

“I knew that in order to move forward, I had to let go of the old Amy and learn to embrace the new Amy. And that is when it dawned on me that I didn’t have to be five-foot-five anymore. I could be as tall as I wanted. Or as short as I wanted, depending on who I was dating. And if I snowboarded again, my feet aren’t going to get cold. And best of all, I thought, I can make my feet the size of all the shoes that are on the sales rack. And I did!”

Amy Purdy, the 2014 Paralympic bronze medalist in adaptive snowboarding and the only double-leg amputee competing at the world-class level

“Don’t talk to the money, talk to people. Focus on relationships and experiences.”

“To get ready for the changes ahead, define how you deliver value to clients, get ready to scale your business through tech, be omni-channel. Availability is key—as it always has been and always will be in a relationship-based business.”

“Every client is unique. Nobody is ‘average’ — especially, not the clients you advise. Nobody knows how life will unfold. A robo-plan is fine if life unfolds exactly the way the actuary predicted. But in reality, curveballs are inevitable, and that’s why your clients need you for tailored advice and customized solutions. That’s when the relationship will matter the most, too.”

Payel Farasat, Chief Investment Officer, Loring Ward

“Risk is the uncertainty about lifetime consumption broadly defined, not the variance of [the client’s] investment portfolio.”

Ken French, Professor of Finance at the Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College

“How well do you really know your customers? How often do you meet with them? What can you do to make every experience memorable?”

Bo Burlingham, author and editor-at-large of Inc magazine

“The measures of success are also changing — It used to be about ROI/Wallet Share…my personal belief is that the metric of the future will be share of experience. In an industry like ours where, according to the Oeschli 2014 Affluent client report, there are 3.1 advisors to each investor, advisors who broaden their services enough to become the ‘go-to’ advisor will benefit the most. Share of experience will be the new measure in a connected and commoditized world.”

Marcus Beisel, Chief Marketing Officer, Loring Ward

“The investment problem is solved; the investor problem is not solved. A big part of your job is dealing with behavioral issues.”Alex Potts, CEO, Loring Ward

The views expressed represent the opinions of the author which are subject to change and are not intended as a forecast or guarantee of future results. Stated information is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be perceived as investment advice or a recommendation for any security. While Loring Ward believes the information to be accurate and reliable, we do not claim or have responsibility for its completeness, accuracy, or reliability. Statements of future expectations, estimates, projections, and other forward-looking statements are based on available information and the author's view as of the time of these statements. Actual results, performance or events may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. past performance of various investment strategies, sectors, vehicles, and indices are not indicative of future results.